Finally. After so many times looking at aftermarket limousine conversions (with questionable build quality) on Mercedes I finally found a real factory Pullman. This is a 2001 S500 Pullman six seater with the AMG Advanced Mobile Media System. And here this whole time you thought AMG was just good at making cars that burn tires. This is a fully mobile office computers, desks, live televisions, DVD players and 43 kbps internet service. Well, maybe stick to your smartphones for the internet service. But this car is a great example how well a limo can be done with the right materials and planning. Lets check it out.

The W140 Mercedes-Benz S500 Grand Edition is a one of those cars that you probably forgot about if you knew they existed in the first place. I looked at a really nice one about a year ago and they don’t pop up for sale all that often. I’m sure that has a lot to do with just 600 of these cars ever made, but a lot of times when I do see them for sale they are in a pretty sad state. Chalk that up to the W140 not really being a collectible yet and the market still really soft on them, but I think this car has some serious potential to be a in demand model when it comes to Mercedes enthusiasts. If you want the best of what the W140 has to offer and don’t want to fully dive in with a S600, then the S500 Grand Edition is probably going to be your answer. This example up for sale in California is probably the nicest one I’ve seen come up for sale in a long time and I’m even more surprised at it’s condition given its four owners and over 100,000 miles. The question is, are you willing to pony up a heavy premium for such a nice example?

The 2001 Mercedes-Benz S500 had the job of carrying on the legacy of being the best sedan in the world for the past 40 or so years. It failed miserably. Not only was the design a soft, mushy shape, but the materials inside were less than stellar. Thanks to unproven things like Airmatic suspension (as opposed to hydraulic), reliability wasn’t great and legacy buyers were jumping ship for cars and SUVs from rival brands. Don’t get me wrong, people still bought these but the S-Class was no longer than the standard of full-size luxury and technology and more-so just another blob sedan in a now very crowded market. So why am I featuring such a forgettable car today? Well the interior, of course.

Welcome back to Fail Friday! Today we have a 2007 Mercedes-Benz S550 that you can probably take one guess as to why I am taking a look at it. This first-year W221 has all your standard custom S-Class ”enhancements” with oversized wheels, custom interior, blacked out taillights and headlights, a color change but the biggest thing that sets this S550 apart: suicide doors. In today’s world, the full-size suicide door is only reserved for various Rolls-Royce models, but thanks to some actually really nice work, you can have them on your highly depreciated S-Class too. But is it worth it?

As a send off to the Mercedes-Benz W140 S-Class in 1999, Mercedes gave 600 S500s the treatment of the Grand Edition. All painted black, these cars had 18 inch AMG Monoblock wheels, the same hand stitched seats and steering wheel from the S600, a special birdseye maple woodgrain trim, privacy screens on the rear and back windows and illuminated door sills on top of all the standard things you got on the S500. Sticker price for these 600 cars was $89,500, a mere $2,000 more than the regular S500 â€” which is totally worth it in my eyes. Most of the time these older Mercedes-Benz ”special edition” cars haven’t had any impact on their value once they are past their warranty limit. But for this W140, it has been just a little different.

The final year of 1999 for the W140 Mercedes-Benz is one of those “hindsight is 20/20” things. At the time, no one probably had any idea that 1999 would be considered by many to be the last of the true over-engineered cars from Mercedes. From the mid-1950s, the S-Class was basically the standard for full-size luxury cars. So the year 2000 rolls around with the launch of the W220 and everything is status quo with the S-Class, right? Not really. I don’t blame Mercedes for going tech heavy with the W220, it is what needed to be done to compete with 7-series, A8 and the real killer, the Lexus LS. The problem was the early W220 didn’t live up to quality and reliability standards that S-Class owners were used to. Combine that with soft styling and a car that didn’t “feel” like a S-Class and you have a real problem. Now it’s 2017 and we look back on the W140 has the last true beacon of hope for feeling that old Mercedes charm while W220s languish for sale on Craiglist for $2,700. But right now these nice W140s aren’t being snagged up like W126 560SELs are and prices reflect that. So when a nice late-model W140 does come up for sale, is it time to buy?

Key features: Leather, 6-Disc CD-Changer, Bose Sound, Heated Seats, Moon Roof, Tinted Windows, Xenon Headlights
You are bidding on a 2nd-owner vehicle in excellent condition. The owner is motivated to sell.
This sedan looks stylish and drives nice and smooth. Come take it home! You will be thrilled to own it. Take a look at the detailed series of 36 pictures below.

Check out my 100% positive feedback and buy with confidence!

First off, thank you to whoever maintained this paint. I’m so used to seeing black paint totally ruined with swirl marks and fine scratches that I’m actually shocked to see how great this paint looks. On the inside, everything looks relatively fresh for almost 155,000 miles outside of a little wear on the steering wheel and the rear window shade button that is pushed in on the center console. A little odd for that to happen, but it can be fixed without too much trouble. Under the hood, the M119 looks to be in order but I’m always weary if a car has no maintenance records, no matter how clean it looks. The M119 is extremely stout outside of a few common things like oiler tubes, leaking camshaft magnets and these little timing chain guides located in the top of the engine. (Fun fact: Rolls-Royce/Bentley actually considered the M119 for use in the Seraph/Arnage but went with far more troublesome BMW engines instead.) Surprisingly, the tires look pretty well-worn which I don’t see too often with vehicles for sale by dealers like this one.

$8,995 isn’t a bad price for this car, but given the miles and the California market place, I think around the $7,500 mark would be a far better deal. The W140 market is pretty flat right now and people aren’t exactly going out of their way to scoop up even the most pristine examples. The 155,000 miles isn’t doing this car any favors either, no matter how clean this S500 looks. At the end of the day, this is California. You can probably throw a stone and hit a used S-Class. No need to overpay for something you can easily fine elsewhere.

In my opinion, the W140 coupe didn’t age particularity well. That isn’t a huge knock on it because not a lot of cars from the early to mid-90s did age all that well. I think in some angels the C140 looks very handsome, not very offensive. But from other views, mainly the front profile like you see in the photo above, it all looks very odd to me. I totally get why I think it looks this way, you have massive flared fenders up from and a giant rear quarter panel in the back. This is all very good except for the fact that the 16 inch wheels don’t fill out these spaces. The car looks almost top-heavy to me. This of course can be fixed with a proper set of wheels and some suspension modifications. (I still regret not buying that car.) Then again, the main reason you bought this massive coupe is to relax, not worry about bending a $2000 wheel on a minor pothole. You can see the how much I think about this stuff.

Â· W140 series (last of the â€œbecause they couldâ€ big cars built by MB). Classic design coupe; rare, less than 15,000 total production from 1992 â€“ 1998. Car spent the first 18 years in California and Florida.

Â· Mechanically very sound. Superb driver. All maintenance up to date. ETB and main engine wiring harnesses replaced. Trans fluid changed. Engine partially overhauled at 66,000 miles (due to engine overheating). Engine very strong. No oil usage. Brakes serviced. Many major components have been serviced or replaced. Underside very clean. Michelin tires w/10,000 miles. Oil/filter changed every year before going into storage. Exceptionally clean and well cared for automobile.

Â· Complete service records starting 2011

Â· Exterior and interior very clean. Smoke free. Leather in very good condition. No dents or body repair. Original paint very shiny with minimal scratches/nicks. Front fenders and hood repainted (Not due to any accident – Top quality repaint). Carpets in very good shape (minor stains on driver side floor and in trunk). Wood in excellent condition

Â· Additional areas needing attention: headliner over rear seat is loose (minor flap with windows open, not detached). Rear head rests raise/lower mechanisms will need to be replaced soon; still work but beginning to make gear grinding sounds indicating gears are slipping. Passenger seat head rest not working. Rough idle issue that is not permanent; quick acceleration corrects it. Everything else works! Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or need to know more. Shipping is buyer’s responsibly. Deposit of $500 dollars required within 24 hours of purchase.

When I first glanced this 1995 S500 Coupe for sale in Illinois, I thought I had a real winner. Very clean both inside and out, lower mileage and coming from a seller who knows how to properly photograph a car when they are selling it. Then I started reading the fine print. Things like ”occasional rough idle at startup” and ”engine partially overhauled at 66,000 miles (due to engine overheating)” started giving me second thoughts. On the inside, more things like seat belt pretensioners not working, headrests either dead or on their way out and a sagging headliner give me pause. It’s not like all of these things are a major deal, but it just tells me maybe this car wasn’t a number one priority to try to keep in exceptional shape. I totally understand though because the majority of people live with issues on their cars and it doesn’t bother them. But to me, these cars are what I’m into and ”occasional rough idles” keep me up at night.

What I’m interested to see is where the bidding ends up. I have no doubt that someone is going to fall in love with this car based on the outstanding photos and start bidding away, issues be damned. Nice C140s are becoming rare very and clean ones like this aren’t popping up as much as they used to. If I had to guess, the $7,500 to 10,000 range wouldn’t shock me because a lot of people have no problem throwing caution to the wind. At the end of the day, I guess whatever kind of risk you can stomach all plays into older car purchases, but I like to play it a little more safe.

It has been a while since I featured a nice W140, but this example outside of Detroit has given me a perfect excuse to check out another one. This 1992 500SEL in Arctic White with the outstanding Saffron leather interior has everything you would want out of an early W140 and a few extras that I think are great additions. Of course, all this comes with a price tag.

1992 S500 Immaculate. White over Palomino. All options including self closing latches on doors, power rear view mirror, self closing latch on trunk . . . . . . . . . . The vehicle has never been driven in the winter and has been kept in climate controlled storage. The car has never been through a car wash, only hand washed. I bought it with 99,000 a decade ago, and now it has 104,898 miles on it. It has been a summer Sunday driver. Living in MI does not afford me the opportunity to enjoy the vehicle as much as I’d like to which is the reason for selling the car. As a Benz aficionado you would know that all big body big engine Benz’s were 500SEL’s in 1992. In 1993 they became S500’s. The second owner, a physician in Myrtle Beach SC, bought the 20 inch AMG wheels and low profile tires you see on the vehicle in 1996. He also had the fascia’s on the front and back bumper and side fascia all pained white to match the rest of the car, and re-badged it an S-500. Since the wheels came out in 1996, and the all one color “Euro” look came out at the same time, most think its a 96 car or later. Everything works and it has been maintained for me by my local Mercedes dealer over time. With this vehicle it’s not about the price, it’s about the car. If your looking for an outstanding Vintage Benz that has been pampered and lived its life being well cared for, then the money is secondary to this piece of history. The vehicle has never been in an accident and also comes with a car cover.

First off, let’s address the best part of this car: the wheels. These are called ‘Eltanin’ wheels which were available as an option on European W140 sedans and coupes in 18 by 8.5 inches wide. Because the grass is always greener on the other side and these wheels looks great on the bigger body sedans, the Eltanins are in high demand with the W140 crowd and bring a pretty penny when up for sale. Also, on the exterior of the car, one of the previous owners decided to spray the lower body cladding Arctic White to match the rest of the car which gives it an updated look to match the later W140s. The badging on the trunk was changed from ‘500SEL’ to ‘S500’ which is a little odd because it’s 2017, who cares if your car looks 22 years-old vs. 25 years-old. Inside, this car is equipped with the Saffron leather which is a love it or hate it kind of color. I personally love it because it fits so well with the burl wood and matching colored carpets. You still get some darker color tones with the black dash and door trim so the interior isn’t all a mess of tan and caramel colors.

The ‘Buy It Now’ on this car is $8,000 which isn’t totally out of the question if this car is truly how it presents itself. For that kind of money I’d probably want to pop off the valve covers to take a good look at the oil tubes to see if they were changed over to metal and check the cam chain guides as well. We still aren’t at a point where W140s are becoming collectible outside of S600s and the S500 Grand Edition because the market is still flooded with every variation of these cars for a few thousand dollars. If you want a nice early W140, you’d get no argument from me about snagging this car because it sure seems like a good buy. But if you’re like me and go all in if you are committing to a 20 year-old car, the V12 S600 is where I’m spending my money.

Somehow these things lead me down a convoluted path to talk about a 1994 Mercedes-Benz S500. What’s the connection?

From the title, you’ll know of course this is not just any W140. It is a W140 once owned by Jon Bon Jovi, and now it is for sale in New Jersey. At a secondhand used car lot, across from a strip mall. Bingo!

LimousineÂ conversions can go either way. The way I enjoy them are the factory conversions which Mercedes-Benz calls the “Pullman”, a term carried over from railroad cars that were built to be relaxed in. Their fit and finish is totally perfect, which makes sense because these cars were usually built for heads of state like Boris Yeltsin Vladimir Putin to be the ultimate in chauffeured transport. On the other end, companies have taken the standard production car, sliced them in half, lengthened them, stitched them back together then added their own interiors in the passenger compartment. These cars were mostly used as shuttles for kids toÂ puke up their JÃ¤germeister on the way to the prom. Today’s 500SEL for sale outside of Boston is one of those types of limousines. Yea?

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